Melissa Parke (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In the world today there are over 650 million people living with a disability, which represents a worldwide cohort that is half the population of China, double the population of the United States and 29 times the population of Australia. Eighty percent of the world’s people living with disability are to be found in developing countries and 82 percent of those live below the poverty line on less than US $1.25 per day—a truly shocking statistic.

As the Foreign Minister, Kevin Rudd, notes in his foreword to AusAid’s historic first disability strategy, Development for All: Towards a disability-inclusive Australian aid program 2009-2014, only three to four percent of people with disability are estimated to benefit from international development assistance. These people are among the most disadvantaged on the planet. They suffer enormously, they struggle to survive and they often have little prospect of improving lives that are desperate, impoverished, alienated and characterised by physical and psychological pain.

I bring this matter for consideration as a notice of motion tonight with a view to achieving two things: first, simply to raise awareness of the particular disadvantage faced by people with disability in developing countries. In saying that, of course, my sense of that disadvantage flows from an understanding of the need for improved disability services in this country—and I am glad that that is a priority of this government. The second and more substantial reason is to support and advocate for a greater focus on disability when it comes to the administration of Australia’s development aid program.

While it is true to say that a focus on disability already exists within our aid program and while it is important to recognise that our aid agency has now, for the first time, a guiding disability strategy, it is also true that our efforts in this area will need to go wider and further still. That is a view shared by organisations like UNICEF and World Vision.

When it comes to people who face the twin impediments of poverty and disability, it is no surprise that some of the worst and most severe effects are experienced by children. Across the world, some 200 million children live with disability; 90 percent of whom will never attend school. For a child in a developing country, disability is a barrier to education, health, mobility and social inclusion. It is often an insuperable barrier.

UNICEF estimates that 10 percent of South-east Asian young children have some form of disability. In Bangladesh, an ActionAid study of 100,000 children found a prevalence rate of between 13 and 14 percent. UNICEF’s own study, called Educating Children in Different Circumstances, found that only eight percent of these kids were enrolled in school. Only one percent of schools in Bangladesh have the physical capacity to cater for children with disability.

In Pakistan, it is estimated that there are 820,000 school-age children with some form of disability. Only two per cent attend formal or informal schools, which is partly because of cultural and social stigmas that lead parents to feel that disability is a curse or bad fate that has been earned somehow and so it is a condition about which the family and child should be ashamed. In some families, children with disability are actively neglected for this reason.

In addition to those kids who suffer disability, there are a significant number of children whose lives are affected by the disabilities of those around them. The lack of support for people with disability means that children with disabled brothers or sisters can find that their needs are not properly met. The unleavened burden of disability takes its toll on the whole family unit, and in many cases it will be the children whose health and life prospects are irretrievably damaged.

Children living in communities where, through conflict or war or extreme poverty, there are large numbers of people with disability can find themselves forced out of school and into work, and this will almost always be the case with children of disabled parents. In such circumstances, children as young as five or six can be forced to live an adult life, with all the harsh consequences that this brings in terms of safety and physical hardship, and with all the deprivations that it involves in terms of losing one’s childhood, losing the protective cocoon of the home environment and losing the enabling force that is education. Children in this situation experience a severe impact on their social, mental, educational and physical development, and it tends to be an impact that echoes through the rest of their lives.

The International Labour Organisation estimates 386 million people with disability are of working age. Many are prevented from working through the absence of appropriate support programs. Yet, with the provision of relevant training and workplace opportunities, they would be able to earn an income and be productive members of their communities. This is an example of the ballooning positive impact that is made possible by removing the barriers that disability represents.

I want to take this opportunity to draw members’ attention to the particular case of people with disability who also suffer from HIV-AIDS. People with disability in the developing world are especially vulnerable to HIV infection, which is a compounding of misery that seems about as hard and terrible and unfair as things get. World Vision is doing a lot of important work in this area, and I would suggest that those interested in this issue look at a video called The voice of 650 million times one, which shows clearly how programs to tackle HIV and AIDS are not sufficiently accessible or inclusive of people with disability.

I am proud to be part of a government that has not only committed to expanding our development aid assistance but that has also created a new aid strategy that targets funding towards people with disability. The Development for All strategy administered by AusAID now seeks to direct aid in a manner that will best help disabled recipients by directly funding the treatment of curable and preventable illnesses that can lead to disability, as well as by funding infrastructure and educational programs designed to equip people with the items and knowledge they need to live safe, healthy lives, and lives that are as unencumbered by disability as possible.

We should remember that Australia was one of the first nations in the world to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. In 2008 we further confirmed our commitment to a human rights based approach to disability through both government initiatives and the work of the Australian Human Rights Commission. In that way, we acknowledge that each and every person has the same fundamental rights, that people with disabilities sometimes require assistance to have their rights fulfilled and that it is very much the role of government to ensure that they receive that assistance.

The Australian Disability and Development Consortium has welcomed this government’s move towards a development assistance program that is designed to include consideration of people with disability and to directly address their needs as a matter of human rights, as a matter of good global citizenship and as a matter of common sense. Some of the identified priorities to be pursued in the medium term include: a greater focus on assistance that increases access and inclusion when it comes to education, especially in the Asia and Pacific regions; an emphasis on participation by people with disability in sector policy dialogues and in program design; the inclusion in general aid effectiveness monitoring mechanisms of specific disability support indicators; and a review of emergency response and assistance programs to ensure that the special needs of people with disability are properly accounted for in the aftermath of emergencies and natural disasters.

These are only some of a range of well-considered objectives, and I am sure all members would recognise that the last one I mentioned seems particularly important in the context of the events both here and around the world in the first three months of 2011.

As we pursue these imperatives through our own programs we of course acknowledge that organisations such as Oxfam, UNICEF, World Vision, Handicap International, the Atlas Alliance and the Swedish Organisations of Disabled Persons are likely to be important partners of government through their expertise and experience in helping people with disability in the developing world.

As I have said before, and as I will continue saying, Australians are rightly proud of our foreign aid commitments and of our move to increase aid to 0.5 per cent of GNI by 2015-16. Our provision of development aid assistance is entirely consonant with our belief in a fair go for everyone, and with our character as an outward looking, compassionate people.

It would be an improvement to the future administration of Australian development assistance if consideration of people with disability was a more deeply pro forma part of assessing and delivering our aid program. That is why we are on that path, which is the most important thing, and I congratulate both the current and former Foreign Ministers and their parliamentary secretaries on their work in setting us on that path.

John Alexander (Bennelong, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of the motion moved by the honourable member for Fremantle. We have to recognise how far we have yet to go to reach the standards of efficiency in our aid delivery that is expected by our constituency. It is perhaps fitting that this motion is being debated on 21 March, which is Harmony Day. The value of Harmony Day is not only relevant to our diverse electorate here in Australia but also gives us the opportunity to look outside our own borders to those less fortunate.

As a prosperous nation, Australia takes its commitment to foreign aid very seriously. That is why both the coalition and the government have committed to increasing foreign aid spending to 0.5 per cent of our gross national income by 2015-16. However, the ever-present record of wasteful spending by this government gives us great concern, as it is essential for us to ensure that taxpayer money is delivered in the most effective way possible.

There are several strategies to deliver effective aid. In recent discussions with the Ambassador for the Republic of Korea, I have been informed that his country chooses to deliver their aid directly by actually implementing the program themselves, not through just giving money in the expectation that it will reach the right place. This is a form of direct action, if you will. A recent report by the Centre for Global Development entitled Quality of official development assistance assessment ranked Australia 21st out of 31 developed nations in the efficiency of our foreign aid programs. It is clear that these programs must include detailed plans which target aid initiatives where they are most needed and have strict controls to ensure that the money is actually reaching the intended targets.

While an increase in our aid commitment will make general progress towards the Millennium Development Goals, it is vital that we look beyond this to ensure our aid will be focused on the most underprivileged segments of society in developing nations, namely those with a disability. The heavily stratified societies often evident in developing nations only serve to compound the hopelessness faced by those living with a disability in these countries. Poverty is an issue for many across the developing world, but social marginalisation exacerbates the effects of poverty as the ability of a person with a disability to help themselves is often severely constrained.

It is generally recognised that education is the single most important factor in alleviating the effects of poverty in the long term. According to UNICEF, 90 per cent of children with a disability in the developing world are not getting an education. AusAID’s report Development for all: towards a disability-inclusive Australian aid program 2009-2014 correctly suggests that it is imperative for our aid program to tackle this problem as part of our aid program’s specific focus on disability inclusive development.

The determination is to ensure that our aid which is directed towards assisting those living with a disability in developing nations is in line with our obligations under the international Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The right to live life by acceptable standards has been further highlighted by the recent announcement of the National Disability Strategy by the Council of Australian Governments.

However, one must question this particular government’s ability to deliver on the goals set out in this strategy. It is therefore essential that whilst we ensure special strategies are developed to create a disability inclusive aid program, we do not forget that the compound social disadvantages for those with a disability are not exclusively limited to developing nations. Here in Australia people with a disability continue to be amongst the most vulnerable. This is despite the many support programs in place, the inroads made in relation to antidiscrimination practices and a general understanding of an inclusive society.

Though Australian society does not face the same issues of poverty present in the developing world, social exclusion and marginalisation are still problems for Australians with disabilities, and that must be dealt with. The coalition has welcomed the findings of the Productivity Commission’s February report, which made clear the urgent need for reform of the existing system of disability support, with bureaucratic red tape leading to people with a disability and their carers slipping through the cracks and not getting the fair go they deserve. By continuing to improve the circumstances of people living with a disability in Australia we can lead by example in encouraging and assisting developing nations to do the same.

In the electorate of Bennelong there are many disability service organisations that are committed to ensuring that those living with a disability have the opportunity to fully participate in our society, despite the challenges presented by circumstance and policy administration. The Harmony Day lunch that I will be hosting in my electorate office on Friday will include representatives from local ethnic groups, members from groups such as the National Epilepsy Association, and service providers to disadvantaged and infirm members of our community.

Celebrating diversity is not just about cultural diversity; it is also about making sure that everyone belongs, regardless of their ability. As I expressed in this place during the last sitting period, I reiterate my strong commitment to support the work of all of Bennelong’s hardworking disability service organisations and hope their great efforts can serve as inspiration for the lofty goals we have for a strong and effective disability inclusive foreign aid program.

Shayne Neumann (Blair, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I heard the member for Bennelong talking about perceived, alleged Labor government waste. I want to tell him this: under the Howard government profligate spending was rampant. John Howard never found a middle class welfare rort he did not want to fund. We have made $83.6 billion in savings in the last three years—far more than the Howard government ever made. Yet those opposite spend most of their time in the red chamber trying to knock off our savings measures. And they come into this place and have the gall to make statements like those of the member for Bennelong!

When Paralympian Kurt Fearnley crawled onto an airline flight in 2009 after refusing to be pushed around in an airline wheelchair, all Australians shuddered. Kurt had just crawled the Kokoda Track and earlier had won his fourth New York wheelchair marathon. I applaud the member for Fremantle for moving this disability inclusive development aid motion and speaking in support of it. Kurt Fearnley demonstrated to us that people living with disabilities can determine what they need and what services should be delivered to them. And domestically the federal Labor government has shown its commitment to antidiscrimination against those suffering from disability by the legislative law reforms we have undertaken and by our commitment to support disability support pensioners and their carers with massive increases in the pension and through secure and sustainable redevelopment of the pension. Our commitment to carers, carer payments and carer allowance is exemplary and it is far more than those opposite ever did during their many years of tenure on the Treasury benches. 

This motion recognises the importance of active participation by people with disability in the formulation of policy and the monitoring of funding. The federal Labor government is committed to ensuring that people with disability have the opportunity to reach their full potential as equal citizens and not just objects of charity, which was how they were so often thought of by the Howard coalition government. Just this week the Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs launched the National Disability Strategy, a 10-year national plan. Those opposite never had the wit nor the wisdom to do such a thing. It is a plan to improve the lives of Australians with disability, their families and their carers. This is a particularly significant undertaking, done in partnership with the states and territories under COAG. The strategy acknowledges that successful implementation requires collaboration with people with disability. That is what is happening here in Australia.

The World Health Organisation tells us that 10 per cent of the world’s population is living with a disability, and 80 per cent of those are living in developing countries—many in our neighbourhood, in the Pacific rim and in South-East Asia. Southern Asia is the world’s second most populous region and the World Health Organisation estimates that about 140 million people of all ages in this region are living with a disability. Thirty per cent or 42 million of those are children. High levels of illiteracy, gender disparity and inequality, poverty and child labour may define the socio-economic context of the region and also contribute to the risk of disabilities.

In South Asia large numbers of children with disability, who struggle daily with additional hardships, are not getting the chance to improve their lives through education. They are the world’s largest marginalised group. In 2008 the federal Labor government ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability, formally ratifying our inherent belief that people with disabilities are entitled to have the same rights as many others and are citizens, not objects of charity.

All people, including children, deserve the right to full participation in the community. The devastation recently experienced in my home state of Queensland and in Christchurch in New Zealand, and which was climaxed in our thinking in the Japanese earthquake, tsunami and nuclear threat, highlights the timeliness of this motion, and I commend the member for bringing it. Past experience demonstrates that people with disability are more likely to be left behind or abandoned during evacuation in disasters and conflicts. We saw that in Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in the United States.

During the Pakistan floods in 2010, 20 million people were affected, killing 1750 and submerging an area larger than the UK. In Australia and New Zealand during the recent crises local governments responded to communities without essential services. However, from time to time we even saw people with disability unable to use the portaloos. It is important for AusAID and the Departments of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Defence to continue their engagement with disability-inclusive development policy, particularly when you consider the work that goes on internationally during disasters and conflicts. I commend the member for this motion and I wholeheartedly support it and I condemn those opposite for their failures with respect to disabilities.

Ken Wyatt (Hasluck, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I want to compliment the member for Fremantle for putting forward this motion. It has always been my belief that our commitment in aid, particularly in the areas of health, and in this particular field, are significant in the contribution that we make. I know that we often agree to the rights of individuals—we sign conventions—but the thing that needs to follow in this process is consideration of humanity and compassion in the way that we implement programs and put them into place.

I recently had a unique experience in Hasluck, where I have established a disability and carers advisory group that comprises carers and people who are experiencing difficulties. But let me say that without the health and allied health industries and agencies found in developed countries such as Australia, the plight of the disabled in developing countries if fairly dire. It is problematic because they do not have access to the level of skills and the types of supports that are needed.

Let me just share with you some of the things that I have discovered in my journey, which I think would be compounded significantly in countries that experience third-world conditions or who do not have access to the same things that we do. What was said to me was, ‘We agree that children and young people are hit with disabilities but the hardest hit are the mothers—the carers who look after children.’ I suspect that that is compounded in third-world countries or countries that we provide aid to.

Seventy-five per cent of marriages disintegrate, and men walk away for their responsibility of caring for children. Again, I think this problem would be compounded in countries that you have alluded to in your address. Post-school options for disabled children in Australia are dire to nonexistent in many parts. The young disabled men and women of Australia are sitting at home alone and isolated. Their parents do not know where to turn for help. That was the very clear message that came out in a First World country. I would suspect that the issue in any nation that we support would be much more dire than that.

I also heard some clear messages about accommodation options. Independent and supported accommodation options are few and far between. The consequences of having no accommodation options for carers is that elderly parents look after their children until they themselves die. The other message I heard clearly from parents and caregivers was: ‘What happens to the person I am caring for when I die?’ If we have this dilemma in this country, then, again, it would be compounded in the countries that we provide aid to, where there are no systems that provides that level of support and comfort. I think in our own backyard we are hearing some of those very significant messages.

Once they become an adult, disabled children are often lumped in the 16 to 65 age group; their individual needs are not addressed. Carers are isolated and lack support from agencies in the community. Respite care is expensive and difficult to arrange. With their lives as tough as they are, carers have the added burden of having to negotiate ridiculous red tape and bureaucracy. At least we are fortunate enough in this country to have that opportunity, although it is not favourable in terms of the challenges that the families face. I would hope that our aid is going to the process of implementation. Not the broad ranging establishment of a program but the way in which it counts for any child or any adult who has a disability that is affected, because the figures that the member for Fremantle mentioned are horrendous. The aid that is often provided from a number of countries is not sufficient to meet needs. Again, we have that same situation in our own country, so there is a compounding effect for anyone living in a country where you do not have access to the types of supports that prevail here.

The other thing that is challenging is that you can often be lost within systems. If people get lost within a system such as ours, then I suspect the figures that you provide are only indicative—they are not the true figures for children in countries that we provide aid to who experience disabilities. I commend the member for putting forward this motion and I support it. Thank you.

Sharon Bird (Cunningham, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.